But What Can You Do? tracks where 2026 candidates stand on U.S. weapons and funding for the government of Israel. How we check
Suzanne Bonamici
- ✓ Cosponsors the Block the Bombs Act
- Backed with $6K by PACs we track that support U.S. weapons funding for the government of Israel (lifetime)
Bonamici backed the April 2024 package while condemning how Netanyahu responded in Gaza, then co-sponsored Block the Bombs, calling it “a moral imperative that we expedite an end to the suffering”. In 2026 she voted to cut $3.3 billion from U.S. aid to Israel. She has long backed defensive aid.
The email has replies@butwhatcanyoudo.org in cc, so we can post their answer on their page in their own words; remove it if you prefer. Keep the subject line as it is, add your name, and send.
You asked Suzanne Bonamici where they stand.
Deep Dive
Bonamici has represented Oregon’s 1st District since 2012. Her six recorded votes appear as badges on this card: Yes on the April 2024 supplemental, No on the other three aid measures, No on the amendment to cut $500 million for Israeli missile-defense programs, Yes on the 2026 amendment to cut $3.3 billion from aid to Israel.
Her April 2024 statement holds both halves of her position: "I have long supported defensive military assistance, like Iron Dome, because it saves countless lives", paired with "I strongly disagree with how Prime Minister Netanyahu and other Netanyahu-aligned Israeli leaders have responded in Gaza. The death and destruction have been devastating and unacceptable." She would have preferred a defensive-only bill.
By August 2025 she co-sponsored the Block the Bombs Act restricting offensive transfers, writing that "starvation is rampant, and much of Gaza has been destroyed", that she does not support "the Israeli government’s current military approach, which is killing far too many Palestinian civilians", and that "This bill is a call for change, and I see it as a moral imperative that we expedite an end to the suffering."
In August 2025 she joined Oregon’s delegation statement condemning antisemitic vandalism at the Oregon Jewish Museum while insisting "We should not, however, equate legitimate and necessary criticism of the current Israeli government with antisemitism." As Education Committee Ranking Member she has pressed on campus antisemitism since 2023 while accusing Republicans of politicizing the hearings. Her November 2023 statements and a January 2024 Jewish-House-Democrats statement are on the research page.
The record
Supported sending weapons or funding in 2 of 6 tracked votes · Cosponsors the Block the Bombs Act
How this mark works
We track key votes on sending U.S. weapons and money to the government of Israel. A check means every tracked vote they cast came down against sending more, on the side of peace and de-escalation. A question mark means a mixed record: they sided with sending up to half of the time. An X means they voted to send more weapons and money in over half of their tracked votes, even as the way those weapons and dollars were being used became more and more obvious. At exactly half, money this election cycle from a lobbying group we track, or an endorsement from a group that backs sending weapons, makes it an X. Only votes actually cast are counted. Where a candidate has no recorded votes on these bills, the mark comes instead from a reviewed reading of their public record (money from the lobbying groups we track, endorsements, and their own words since January 26, 2024). There an X also covers fully backing the conduct of the war by the government of Israel without significant reservations, and a question mark also covers speaking about Israel without saying clearly where they stand on U.S. weapons and funding. A dash means No Position Found: we found nothing in their own words about Israel, Gaza or the war.
See a dash? Ask the candidate where they stand, then send us their answer and we'll review it and update the mark. Or volunteer to help review candidates.
Voted to send weapons or funding in some, but no more than half, of their recorded tracked votes. (Supported sending weapons or funding in 2 of 6 tracked votes.)
The money
$6K in lifetime support from the five lobbying groups we track
In their words
Research log
The notes behind this card: what we looked at, what we found, and where each item came from.
U.S. military aid and weapons to Israel
- Her recorded votes appear as badges on this card: No on H.R. 6126, Yes on H.R. 8034, No on H.R. 8369, No on H.R. 7217, No on the amendment to cut $500 million for Israeli missile-defense programs, Yes on the 2026 amendment to cut $3.3 billion from aid to Israel.
- [Position, 2024-04-20] The package statement, verified and quoted in the deep dive.
- [Position, 2025-08-28] The Block the Bombs statement, verified and quoted on the card.
U.S. aid to Palestinians
- The April 2024 package she backed included Gaza humanitarian assistance, and her 2025 statement demands aid access; no separate aid-program position located outside that period.
Characterization of the conflict
- [Position, 2025-08-28] The Block the Bombs statement’s starvation and civilian-deaths passages, verified.
- Her November 21, 2023 statement (right to exist, too many Palestinian civilian deaths, bilateral ceasefire) and the January 20, 2024 statement of 15 Jewish House Democrats rebuking Prime Minister Netanyahu’s rejection of a Palestinian state are not on the card summary.
Related rhetoric and lobbying
- [Joint statement, 2025-08-14] The Oregon delegation statement, verified: criticism-is-not-antisemitism line and the Netanyahu self-interest passage.
- Tracked committee support appears as a badge on this card.
Safety and antisemitism
- [Position, 2025-08-14] The delegation statement condemning the Oregon Jewish Museum vandalism, verified.
- [Action, 2024-05-08 and 2025-05-07] Her Education Committee hearing statements on campus antisemitism, including her criticism of the proceedings as performative; committee-page and press sources, with two hearing videos not yet confirmed.
- Her H.Res. 798 statement is dated November 2, 2023 and is not on the card summary.
Race and status context
- Sitting member, nominated. Her Republican challenger’s card carries its own record.
Also in this race
- –No Position Found Barbara Kahl (Republican)
All Oregon candidates.
See everyone on the Oregon ballot →But What Can You Do? tracks where 2026 candidates stand on U.S. weapons and funding for the government of Israel. Every claim on this page goes through at least two verification steps. Open Find Your Candidates for votes, funding and contact details.